On-Water Experiences
The Museum offers a variety of on-water experiences, providing adventures for the whole family. All boat rides include same-day Museum admission at no extra charge. At the Michigan Maritime Museum, we are more than just a boat ride!
Celebrating 20 Years of Friends Good Will!
2004-2024
Friends Good Will
Friends Good Will is a replica 1810 top sail sloop. The dramatic story of Friends Good Will speaks to the history of Great Lakes commerce, such as the fur trade, in the early 1800s, as well as her pivotal role in the War of 1812. We are proud to be home to Friends Good Will and be able to provide our visitors with a unique on-water experience aboard this historic replica tall ship.
Day Sail
Our day sails offer passengers a chance to step aboard history and learn what is was like for early sailors on the Great Lakes. Stand at her bow, feel the wind on your face and hear the crack of her billowing sails. Do more than imagine how sailors felt as they set sail for uncharted courses–experience it for yourself!
Operation Dates: Memorial Weekend – September (Wednesday – Sunday, Daily in July)
Departure Times: 1:15 PM, 3:15 PM, 5:30 PM
Length: 90-minutes
Age Restrictions: 4+ (no exceptions)
Max. Passengers: 28
Price Per Passenger: $40.00
Private Charter: $1,200
**Private charter pricing is for the whole boat (1 to 28 passengers). Day Sail private charters must be booked in advance. Contact the Museum directly for availability and reservations.**
Adventure Sails
This special sailing experience for kids has you and your little sailor becoming part of Friends Good Will’s crew in this interactive, on-water adventure. Learn the ropes and help be part of the Ship’s Watch. Never has so much adventure been packed into one sail!
Operation Dates: Mid-June – Labor Day (Wednesday – Saturday, + Tuesdays in July)
Departure Times: 11 AM
Length: 90-minutes
Age Restrictions: 4+ (no exceptions)
Max. Passengers: 28
Price Per Passenger: $42.00
Private Charter: $1,300
**Private charter pricing is for the whole boat (1 to 28 passengers). Adventure Sail private charters must be booked in advance. Contact the Museum directly for availability and reservations.**
Thursday Sunset Sails
Enjoy the beauty of a sunset sail from the deck of an historic 1810 replica sloop on Lake Michigan. Stand at the bow of Friends Good Will, bask in the glow off the water, feel the wind on your face, and soak up those gorgeous South Haven summer sunsets.
Operation Dates: Thursdays June – August
Departure Times: 8 PM (June 6 – August 8), 7:30 PM (August 15 – August 22)
Length: 90-minutes
Age Restrictions: 4+ (no exceptions)
Max. Passengers: 28
Price Per Passenger: $50.00
Private Charter: $1,300
**Private charter pricing is for the whole boat (1 to 28 passengers). Thursday Sunset Sail private charters must be booked in advance. Contact the Museum directly for availability and reservations.**
Sunset Sails Private Charters
Enjoy the awe-inspiring Lake Michigan sunset coast during a private Sunset Sail for your group aboard Friends Good Will. Private charters book the entire boat for only your group (1 to 28 passengers). Bring along a picnic of boat-friendly food and beverage to share. Make this experience a special one with just your friends and family on your private charter.
Operation Dates: June – August (Wednesday – Sunday, Daily in July)
Departure Times: 8 PM (June 5 – August 11), 7:30 PM (August 14 – August 31)
Length: 90-minutes
Age Restrictions: 4+ (no exceptions)
Passengers: 1 to 28
Private Charter: $1,300
Private charters are permitted to bring boat-friendly food and beverage (adult beverages permitted), no glass containers or coolers with wheels.
Fall Evening Private Charters
What could be better than a lovely September evening sailing on Lake Michigan? Reserve Friends Good Will for your group during these special fall private charters offered during the last two weeks of September. You and your group (1 to 28 passengers) can relax at the the end of the day and let us do the work while you enjoy good company and the beauty of the Great Lakes in the autumn.
Operation Dates: September 18 – 29 (Wednesday – Sunday)
Departure Time: 5:30 PM
Length: 90-minutes
Age Restrictions: 4+ (no exceptions)
Passengers: 1 to 28
Private Charter: $1,200
Private charters are permitted to bring boat-friendly food and beverage (adult beverages permitted), no glass containers or coolers with wheels.
Special Sails
Fireworks Sail
Celebrate Independence Day in a memorable way! Enjoy South Haven’s incredible fireworks show Light Up the Lake on July 3rd with your friends and family from the deck of our tall ship, Friends Good Will out on Lake Michigan.
Date: July 3rd
Departure Times: 9 PM
Length: 3-hours
Age Restrictions: 4+ (no exceptions)
Max. Passengers: 28
Price Per Passenger: $100.00
20th Anniversary Sail
Celebrate Friends Good Will’s 20th Anniversary with us on August 29th during this special sail to honor her including a pre-sail social gathering along our beautiful boardwalk and a champagne toast on the water.
Date: August 29th
Departure Times: 7:30 PM
Length: 90-minutes
Age Restrictions: 4+ (no exceptions)
Max. Passengers: 28
Price Per Passenger: $75.00
The social gathering will begin at 6:30pm with the champagne toast to follow after departure.
Lindy Lou
Lindy Lou is an electric-powered replica river launch. This cruise provides passengers with a chance to recapture those days from the late 1890s through the 1930s when launches plied the Black River, delivering guests to resorts, taking picnickers to up-river parks and pavilions, and generally helping to fill the lazy hours of summer with relaxing diversions.
River Cruise
Relive days gone by with an hour-long cruise aboard our river launch vessel the Lindy Lou! This ~3 mile round-trip cruises travels upstream and back again while the captain regales passengers with the life and history of the Black River.
Operation Dates: Memorial Weekend – September (Daily), October (weather permitting)
Departure Times: 10:30 AM, 12 PM, 1:30 PM, 3:00 PM, 4:30 PM
Length: 1-hour
Age Restrictions: All ages welcome*
Max. Passengers: 12
Price Per Passenger: $30.00
Private Charter: $400.00
*All passengers regardless of age, must purchase a ticket.
**Private charter pricing is for the whole boat (1 to 12 passengers). Lindy Lou private charters must be booked in advance. Contact the Museum directly for availability and reservations.**
USCG Motor Lifeboat 36460
Experience the adventure aboard USCG Motor Lifeboat 36460! This boat, built in 1941, starred in the Disney film The Finest Hours. The film showcases the most daring rescue in Coast Guard history of the oil tanker Pendleton in 1952 off the coast of Massachusetts. Motor Lifeboat 36460 played 36500 (the original rescue boat) for the film. This extraordinary vessel represents one of the most widely used and relied upon rescue boats in Coast Guard history. Step aboard and ride the waves as you salute the United States Coast Guard.
Lake Cruise
Experience the thrill of USCG Motor Lifeboat 36460 with this 30-minute excursion out on Lake Michigan. Learn the history of these incredible rescue boats used by the United States Coast Guard across the Great Lakes and beyond.
Operation Dates: Memorial Weekend – Labor Day Weekend (Wednesday – Saturday)
Departure Times: 11:45 AM, 12:45 PM, 1:45 PM, 2:45 PM, 3:45 PM
Length: 30-minute
Age Restrictions: 4+
Max. Passengers: 6
Price Per Passenger: $20.00
Private Charter: $150.00
**Private charter pricing is for the whole boat (1 to 6 passengers). 36460 private charters must be booked in advance. Contact the Museum directly for availability and reservations.**
Sunset Cruise
Create a lasting memory this summer aboard USCG Motor Lifeboat 36460 on our Sunset Cruise! You’ll have a chance to see South Haven’s coast from the water as you “patrol” the shoreline and enjoy a beautiful South Haven sunset.
Operation Dates: June – August (Thursdays)
Departure Times: 8:30 PM (June 13 – July 25), 8 PM (August 1 – August 29)
Length: 1-hour
Age Restrictions: 4+
Max. Passengers: 6
Price Per Passenger: $30.00
Private Charter: $200.00
**Private charter pricing is for the whole boat (1 to 6 passengers). 36460 private charters must be booked in advance. Contact the Museum directly for availability and reservations.**
Sunset Cruise Private Charter
Enjoy the beautiful summer sunsets that Lake Michigan has to offer aboard USCG Motor Lifeboat 36460. This 60-minute private charter will be sure to wow you as you take in the beauty of the lake and a South Haven sunset from this incredible vessel.
Operation Dates: June – August (Wednesdays)
Departure Times: 8:30 PM (June 13 – July 25), 8 PM (August 1 – August 29)
Length: 1-hour
Age Restrictions: 4+
Passengers: 1 to 6
Private Charter: $200.00
Private charters are permitted to bring boat-friendly food and beverage (adult beverages permitted), no glass containers.
Merry Time
Enjoy pure romance on the water with our 1929 Chris-Craft Cadet, Merry Time. It’s the bees knees! These cruises offer chauffeured luxury on Lake Michigan and the Black River. Whether it’s cruising along the river front or making waves on the Lake, this boat is perfect for anyone with an appreciation for the elegant design and style only classic wooden boats can provide.
Harbor & Lake Cruise
Experience the luxury and romance of the Roaring 20’s while cruising aboard the Michigan Maritime Museum’s 1929 Chris Craft Cadet Merry Time. Cruise back in time…to a time of flappers and jazz.
Operation Dates: Memorial Weekend – Labor Day Weekend (Thursday – Saturday)
Departure Times: 2:30 PM & 3:45 PM
Length: 45-minute
Age Restrictions: 4+
Max. Passengers: 4
Price Per Passenger: $40.00
Private Charter: $200.00
**Private charter pricing is for the whole boat (1 to 4 passengers). Merry Time private charters must be booked in advance. Contact the Museum directly for availability and reservations.**
Evening Private Charter
A private cruise on Merry Time is the perfect setting for a romantic evening out on the water, a unique scene for wedding and engagement photos, and a breath-taking opportunity for marriage proposals. Toast to yourselves in true 20’s fashion with your favorite beverage and spend 45 minutes of exclusive chauffeured luxury on the water.
Operation Dates: Memorial Weekend – Labor Day Weekend (Thursday – Saturday)
Departure Times: 5 PM
Length: 45-minute
Age Restrictions: 4+
Passengers: 1 to 4
Private Charter: $200.00
Private charters are permitted to bring boat-friendly food and beverage (adult beverages permitted), no glass containers.
Guest Information
Museum admission is included with every boat ticket. Guests should plan on arriving no less than 30 minutes prior to departure for check in and safety briefings. Our boats will leave promptly for departure and will not be held for any reason. Check-in is at the Welcome Desk located in the Maritime Heritage Center.
All boat trips depart from and return to the Museum docks located on the Museum campus at 260 Dyckman Ave.
The Museum does not provide food or beverage aboard boats. Boat-friendly (no glass) snacks and beverages are permitted.
No illegal drugs or alcohol are allowed on board our boats under the Zero Tolerance Policy of the United States Coast Guard.
No smoking is allowed on/near the vessels or on the Museum campus.
Due to the historic nature of our vessels, they are not accessible to wheelchairs. Walkers are not permitted aboard. Guests must be able to board the boats with minimal assistance. Registered service dogs are welcome.
Guests are encouraged to dress for the weather. Layers are recommended as it may be cooler on the Lake. Rubber soled shoes are recommended. Flip-flops and high heels are discouraged.
Fleet and Crew
The Michigan Maritime Museum takes great pride in its fleet and crew. Our Commander of the Fleet, with over 40 years of maritime experience, oversees our multiple USCG licensed captains and crews for all of our vessels. Our staff and volunteer crew members are trained to operate all our equipment to ensure safety and the full enjoyment of our passengers. Our fleet consists of both replica and historic vessels that range from an early 19th century tall ship to a retired United State Coast Guard boat. Our captains and crews not only operate them but also offer historic interpretation. Our boats will go out rain or shine for a true Great Lakes experience!
Our vessel are equipped with all required safety equipment. Prior to each departure, a safety briefing is provided regarding life-saving devices and instructions on their use for every passenger on the boat.
All U.S. Coast Guard regulations are strictly adhered to, so that your safety and enjoyment are assured. Adherence to these regulations is rigorously checked by U.S. Coast Guard staff during regular inspections.
Cancellation & Refund Policy
All ticket sales are final. We do not accept guest exchanges or cancellations. NO EXCEPTIONS.
The Museum reserves the right to cancel a scheduled cruise for any reason up until the time of departure. Cancellations are unlikely EXCEPT in the event of inclement weather such as high wind and waves, fog, or severe lightning. Weather conditions on Lake Michigan can change quickly and, while we attempt to make as many trips as possible, safety is our greatest concern. If the Museum cancels an excursion, we will attempt to reschedule you. If rescheduling is not possible, you will be provided with a full refund.